Event
Whole Farm Approach to Feeding Dairy Cows
Join this Soil Association technical event at Godminster Farm which will focus on producing winter forage for dairy cows.
Join us for this technical session hosted by Peter Cheek at Godminster Farm, Somerset (a 300-cow organic dairy farm) to focus on growing high nutrient resilient forage in ways that maximises soil health, biodiversity and climate outcomes.
We’ll see and discuss:
- Whole crop silages (oats, bean, rye mix), and how they fit in the rotation – timing and entry point in, establishment, weed management in absence of herbicides
- Westerwold Ryegrass, vetch and clover mix
- Benefit of pea / barley mix – establishment, timing in the rotation
- Diverse leys – managing to maximise production and longevity
- Composting of manures to maximise nutrient stability and return
We will be joined by agronomy and nutrition experts from the Mole Valley Forage Team, Lisa Hambly and Adam May to get into the details of seed mixes and what are the best combinations for different outcomes. We’ll also look at how these approaches are building organic matter and improving soil structure.
The event is of interest to:
- Dairy farmers looking to maximise home-grown feed, reducing inputs and increasing resilience.
- Farmers and advisors interested in learning more about low-input resilient systems
Thank you to Richard Hollingbery and Peter Cheek for hosting this event.
The event is free to attend, a light lunch and refreshments will also be included.
Agenda
10:30 Arrival and refreshments
11:00 Introduction to the farm
11:15 Talks and discussion, followed by farm walk with a focus on growing high nutrient resilient forage
13:00 Light lunch and refreshments
14:00 Close and depart
Keep it Lean: an on-farm workshop on veg boxes and caterpillar tunnels
18th March 2025
Join OGA on the farm at Sandy Lane Farm in Oxfordshire where the team will take us through their processes and infrastructure on the farm